The alleged Wisconsin State Assembly Democrats and Democrat Socialists conspiracy and corruption involving dark money campaign tactics totaling more the $500K to oust incumbent Wisconsin State Assembly Representative Ortiz-Velez (D-Milw) in the 8th Assembly District during the Primary Election 2026.
By H. Nelson Goodson
Hispanic News Network U.S.A.
August 8, 2026
Milwaukee, Wisconsin - On Friday, Wisconsin State Representative Sylvia Ortiz-Velez (D-Milw) from the 8th Assembly District in the Southside of Milwaukee claimed in her social media account that at least $500,000 has allegedly been spent by political adversaries in the last week in an attempt to oust her from office, simply because she is an independent state representative who happens to be a Democrat for more than 20 years. Ortiz-Velez says, that she is not a Democrat puppet, but the state representative for her constituents in the 8th Assembly District who elected her to represent them, in order words, she is not for sale, according to her campaign videos. (FB link: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1FPdXD8o4q/)
According to Rep. Ortiz-Velez, the majority of the Wisconsin State Assembly Democrat Caucus that includes the Democrat Socialists and other groups have funneled more than $500K in campaign contributions and expenditures to support Rep. Ortiz-Velez's Primary Election challenger Ismael Luna, a candidate for the State Assembly, who is only known in the Southside Latino community for organizing crews to clean up local parks.
Luna doesn't own a property in the 8th Assembly District, but he rents a home in the Southside of Milwaukee, where he is operating his current election campaign. (FB link: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19HAVs5ewk/)
Voting history in Wisconsin, Rep. Ortiz-Velez has voted in 23 elections, since 2017, compared to Luna, who has voted in 3 elections, in 2018 (WI Governor's race), 2020 (Presidential election) and in 2022 (WI Governor's race). Which Luna has no recent history voting in primary or local elections.
Hispanic News Network U.S.A. (HNNUSA) has learned from Rep. Ortiz-Velez that the following, the Assembly Democrat Campaign Committee (ADCC) headed by Minority State Assembly leader State Representative Greta Neubauer (D-Racine), Wisconsin Working Families Party, Voces de la Frontera Action (donated $10,000 to the Luna campaign), Assembly Accountability Projected (whose members remain anonymous and who allegedly bought thousands of dollars of negative (spreading lies) campaign ads in cable channels targeting Rep. Ortiz-Velez) and others have allegedly spent thousands of campaign dark money dollars to oust Rep. Ortiz-Velez from office.
Apparently, many Democrats in the Wisconsin State Assembly Democrat Caucus have become dismayed that Rep. Neubauer and others in the ADCC leadership committee has funneled thousands of campaign dollars to the 8th Assembly District in order to help oust Rep. Ortiz-Velez in the last ten days, which have disenfranchised other State Assembly Democrats from getting campaign funding from the ADCC to help them get elected in close primary election races, according to Rep. Ortiz-Velez. Also, brewing sentiment among State Democrats in Assembly indicate that once the August 11th Primary Election is over, minority Democrat leader Rep. Neubauer will be allegedly replaced by fellow Democrats who are pushing a change of leadership, and Neubauer's influence to allow a majority of the ADCC campaign funding to go to the 8th Assembly District might be the ultimate reason for ousting Neubauer from the State Assembly Democrat Minority leadership position.
Rep. Ortiz-Velez has spent at least $30,000 for her re-election in the Primary Election 2026.
In other political interests, Wisconsin State Representative Ryan Clancy (D-Milw) criticized the MAGA (Make Amerikkka Great Again) infiltrated Milwaukee Police Association (MPA) political endorsements for Republican and Democrat candidates list dated August 11, 2026. Rep. Clancy says, that Wisconsin State Representatives Priscilla Prado (D-Milw) who was also endorsed by the MPA told him that she did not asked or sought an endorsement from the MPA. (FB link: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BZN2zBh7M/)
But, Rep. Clancy must have missed that the MPA was one of the sponsors last week of a Tequila tasting fundraiser held for Rep. Prado at La Piña MKE. (FB link: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/196Y3j3WHG/)
It seems, that Rep. Prado allegedly failed to tell Rep. Clancy that the MPA had co-sponsored a Tequila tasting fundraiser last week that she benefited from at La Piña MKE. How ironic!
Politics makes very strange bedfellows and where lies and misrepresentations have become very prevelent in Wisconsin politics.
Lastly, in September, we the people will eventually get the totality of how much campaign money including dark money was funneled into the Wisconsin 8th Assembly District from local Democrats, Democrat Socialists, local groups and out of state groups in an attempt to oust Rep. Ortiz-Velez on August 11th, Primary Election 2026.
Rep. Ortiz-Velez told HNNUSA that she is planning to take legal action against all those spreading intentional lies about her, "I will be filing several verified complaints for violations of law including chapter 12.05 against several groups and individuals to the District Attorney’s Office for prosecution and liability regarding false public statements."
Rep. Ortiz-Velez's released the following statement on Saturday.
My record makes it absolutely clear: I do not support ICE overreach, and any claim to the contrary is a complete fiction. Throughout my time in the Wisconsin State Assembly, I have consistently authored and fought for legislation to protect our immigrant communities from unconstitutional federal enforcement. I introduced Assembly Bill 57 (AB 57) to legally block ICE from entering sensitive community locations—such as our schools, churches, and medical centers—without a judicially signed warrant. To combat untraceable immigration sweeps in our neighborhoods, I authored Assembly Bill 441 (AB 441), the De-Masking Bill, which mandates that federal agents must clearly identify themselves by name and agency and explicitly bans them from wearing masks to hide their identities. Most importantly, I successfully passed Wisconsin Act 240 with overwhelming bipartisan support, which directly empowers our community by allowing DACA recipients (Dreamers) to obtain official state occupational licenses in over 200 fields. My legislative actions, my votes, and the laws I have passed prove my unwavering commitment to shielding, supporting, and elevating our immigrant families. We need more than words to protect our communities from ICE, we need action, and I am the only candidate that has delivered real results, Rep. Ortiz-Velez posted in her Facebook account.
Wisconsin State Senator Tim Carpenter (D-Milw) posted in Facebook, Sylvia without your leadership, experience and hard work the DACA Bill would NOT have passed and signed by Gov. Evers.
Now over 5,000 DACA Students can finally get their Wisconsin occupational licenses to work as nurses, social workers, doctors, etc to help serve our community!
Other legislators and candidates can talk and talk about doing things, but YOU delivered!
Vote for Sylvia August 11th.
Editor's note: The HNNUSA article is not an endorsement for any political candidate, but a review of what's happening in the 8th Assembly District in Milwaukee, including the projected (estimated) amount of campaign funding and out of state campaign dark money being funneled into Wisconsin during the Primary Elections in 2026.
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